


A Toast To The Groom

by spockothyprime



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, all the other ships/characters are just mentioned, endgame holsom, it's holsom centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-04-14
Packaged: 2020-01-13 04:31:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18461540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spockothyprime/pseuds/spockothyprime
Summary: “I can’t believe you’re going to miss it. It’s like...I don’t know. Fuck, man.” Shitty still sounds confused, like he’s trying very hard to piece something together with that big Harvard brain of his. Adam can’t blame him. He knows that everyone is still having trouble with the news, that the Holster half of RansomandHolster isn’t going to be at the Ransom’s half’s wedding. Most people seem to know the real reason he isn’t going but no one has brought it up. That doesn’t stop Adam from recognizing the pitying looks everyone seems to be giving him. The odd men out seem to be Shitty, Tango, and (thankfully) Ransom himself.





	A Toast To The Groom

**Author's Note:**

> I was watching Friends and got an idea for Holsom. This is loosely based off Rachel's decision not to attend the wedding of Ross and Emily (and I mean loosely based). I also wrote this at like 2:00 in the morning so I apologize for any typos! Enjoy!

Adam sits down on the couch heavily and lets out a sigh, taking a sip of his beer. His place is trashed; there’s glitter everywhere (courtesy of Shitty) and tequila spilled onto the carpet (also courtesy of Shitty) but Adam can’t find it in him to get up and start cleaning yet. He’s just on the right side of tipsy, drunk enough to be warm and floaty but not so drunk that he feels the need to sing show tunes and cry. Ransom’s bachelor party was truly one for the books and Adam feels satisfied with his performance as best man. Well, the parts he’s actually doing. A little guilt rises up in him at that but he tries his best to quash it down, turning his attention to Shitty who’s taken up residence on his lap. 

“You did good, Birkholtz.” Shitty’s voice is only slightly slurred. “Fucking beautiful. But I knew it would be. Can’t believe you’re not going to be there tomorrow.” 

Adam’s smile becomes slightly more strained and he can only hope Shitty is too drunk to notice. “Yeah, man. I’m bummed too but, you know. My boss is a dick.” The lie rolls off his tongue easily now, with how many times he’s had to repeat it the last few weeks. 

Lardo drops onto the couch beside the two of them, her eyes more alert than any of them since she’s not drinking. She rubs a hand over her stomach and her eyes lock with Adam’s, giving him the look that makes him feel like she’s staring right into his soul. He squirms a bit, averting his gaze quickly. 

“I can’t believe you’re going to miss it. It’s like...I don’t know. Fuck, man.” Shitty still sounds confused, like he’s trying very hard to piece something together with that big Harvard brain of his. Adam can’t blame him. He knows that everyone is still having trouble with the news, that the Holster half of RansomandHolster isn’t going to be at the Ransom’s half’s wedding. Most people seem to know the real reason he isn’t going but no one has brought it up. That doesn’t stop Adam from recognizing the pitying looks everyone seems to be giving him. The odd men out seem to be Shitty, Tango, and (thankfully) Ransom himself. 

“Dude, maybe I should talk to your boss.” Shitty’s voice brings him out of his thoughts and Adam winces, wondering how he’s going to be able to communicate to drunk Shitty what a bad idea that is. 

Lardo, thankfully, comes to his rescue. “Shits, come on. He tried, don’t make him feel worse about it.” 

Shitty’s eyes widen. “Holster!” He seems genuinely distressed at the idea that he’s upset Adam and he presses a kiss to Adam’s forehead. “Dude, it’s totally not your fault. Capitalism and corporate greed, you can’t fucking fight that.” 

“And that’s our cue to go.” Lardo gets to her feet, holding a hand out for Shitty. “When he gets started on capitalism, it’s usually time for bed. Come on, baby.”

Shitty gets to his feet obediently after smacking his lips against Adam’s forehead, going over to jump into Jack’s arms since it seems like Jack and Bitty are getting ready to leave too. Lardo leans down, wrapping Adam in a hug. 

“If you need me tomorrow, you text me.” She pulls away but keeps her hands on his shoulders. “Seriously, dude. If you need me, I’ll be there. I can claim morning sickness and we can spend the day watching shitty romcoms and complaining.” 

Adam almost wants to cry. His friends are so good and he’s not sure what he did right in his life to deserve them, but he’s fucking thankful. He just nods, not trusting his voice at the moment, and that seems good enough for Lardo. She squeezes his shoulders and pulls away, going to rescue Jack from Shitty’s clutches. Adam gets to his feet then to say goodbye, smiling as Bitty comes to hug him. Bitty’s hugs are warm, like the southern weather he was raised in, and Adam sinks into it a little.

“Honey, I know I can’t really top all this. But I promise I’ll do my best to do you proud tomorrow.” Bitty says, pulling away. He reaches up and pats Adam’s cheek clumsily. “I’ll call you tomorrow night, sound good?” He smiles as Adam nods and turns to leave. The rest of the guys follow shortly after and there are hugs and whispered words of support and Adam is exhausted by the end of it. He shuts the door, vaguely wondering if it would just be easier to set fire to his apartment than try to clean it, when he hears a cough. 

“Great party, dude.” Ransom’s voice is soft and Adam sticks his hands in his pockets, forcing a smile onto his face as he looks at his best friend. “Seriously, thank you. It was perfect.” 

“Of course, bro.” Adam waves a hand. “It’s the least I can do. I...I’m sorry again, about tomorrow.” 

There’s an awkward pause and Adam wants to throw himself down a flight of stairs when he sees the way Ransom’s face tightens. “I know you are. It’s fine, I know you tried.” 

_No, I didn’t._ Is what Adam thinks. What he should say, since he hates lying to Ransom and he’s never really done it before, not like this. But instead he nods, busying himself with picking up a few pieces of trash.

“I should. I should go.” Ransom finally says. He walks over and holds his arms up. Adam drops the beer cans he’s holding without hesitation and curls his arms around his best friend, fingers clutching the back of his shirt. Ransom’s hugs are one of the best things in the world, right up there with Bitty’s pies and his mom’s latkes. He’s one of the few people that make Adam feel properly held, his body warm and solid against Adam’s even if Adam rests his full weight on him. 

He never wants to let go.

But he does, after just a few seconds too long, and when he pulls away there’s another pasted on smile ready for Ransom. “I want deets, dude. Tell Amaya hi for me and let her know I’m sorry again.” He turns and begins collecting trash again, ignoring the tears burning in his eyes and nausea that threatens to overwhelm him. 

“I will.” Ransom sounds off but Adam can’t turn around to look at him, he’s absolutely certain he’ll start crying. “Holtz, I...” He trails off and Adam hears him cough a bit. “I’ll text you.” Then there’s the sound of footsteps and a door closing and Adam lets out a ragged breath. His tears begin to fall and he once again abandons his attempt to clean up, staggering back to his bedroom and curling up on the bed. Everything aches, from his chest all the way down to his toes, and he suddenly wishes he was much drunker. 

He’s a terrible person, he knows this. What kind of friend misses his best friend’s wedding? Adam had debated it for months, gone back and forth multiple times. But in the end, he knew himself. He’d watched Ransom meet Amaya, he’d watched the two of them date, he’d helped Ransom plan his proposal, he’d been at the engagement party. He’d put on a brave face, done everything he could to be the supportive friend, and he’d been able to handle it pretty well. But he knew that he couldn’t handle seeing Ransom marry her. He’s done a lot of things for Ransom over the years, he’s given up a lot for Ransom, but he knows that in this he needs to look out for himself. 

Ransom will get over it, he knows it. Bitty will do a great job standing up there with him and giving the toast. And honestly, Ransom will be so infatuated with his new bride that he’ll probably forget Adam isn’t there before the ceremony even starts. That thought fills Adam with a bitter, awful feeling that he hates and he closes his eyes, determined to get to sleep. It takes him a long while to drift off and when he does, he dreams of dark hands resting in his, of warm smiles and matching tuxes and gently kisses. 

When Adam wakes up the next morning, he feels like shit and not just because of the hangover. He forces himself to take a shower and then settles in for a day of wallowing. He gathers snacks and forms a little nest of blankets and pillows around himself on the couch, cradling a carton of orange juice in his arms as he pulls up Parks and Rec on his television.

At 10:00, the group chat starts blowing up. Messages asking where people are meeting, who’s driving who, what everyone’s doing blur past Adam’s eyes when he finally bothers to check it. He turns his phone off when a message comes through asking if Bitty has the rings. 

At noon, Adam switches over to 30 Rock because he really can’t watch Leslie and Ben get married right now. He tries very hard not to think about the fact that everyone’s at the church, instead losing himself in his best comfort show. 

At two, he gets up briefly to go get ice cream. The ceremony is just starting and Adam grips his spoon tightly, digging in with a little more force than absolutely necessary. 

At two thirty, there’s a knock on the door and Adam ignores it. Anyone he’d want to see is at the wedding and he’s not in the mood to deal with salesmen, his dumb neighbors, or anyone else at the moment. But whoever it is knocks again and Adam finally drags himself to his feet, shuffling over to open the door. And then he wonders if he’s finally and truly lost it, if he’s started hallucinating, because Ransom is standing at his door. Which doesn’t make sense because Ransom should be in the middle of his wedding ceremony, not standing in Adam’s doorway. Ransom looks frazzled, close to coral reef mode frazzled. His navy suit jacket is unbuttoned and his bowtie is hanging loose around his neck, the top two buttons of his shirt undone. There’s a wild look in his eye and that snaps Adam out of his daze as alarm bells begin to go off in his brain.

“Rans, what are you-”

“No. Let me talk.” That shuts Adam up again because Ransom rarely interrupts him. He pushes his way into the apartment and Adam lets him, mutely shutting the door behind his best friend before following him into the living room. Ransom observes the sad little depression nest Adam’s made for himself, then turns back to face him. “You aren’t at work.” 

It doesn’t seem like a question, so Adam doesn’t say anything. Ransom sighs and begins to pace. Adam takes that as a signal he should sit down and he pulls his knees up to his chest, feeling much smaller than he usually does. “I knew something was up. I knew you wouldn’t miss my wedding for work. I mean, you’re the guy who missed three days of classes just to drive home with me for my sister’s birthday.” He laughs a little, but it’s choked off and Adam knows Justin is veering towards panic. “I thought that was why everything felt off. You weren’t going to be there, of course it wasn’t going to feel completely right. But I figured day of, I’d get over it. Be wrapped up in the actual getting married part of things. But then I woke up and it felt wrong and I drove to the church and it felt wrong and I put on my suit and it felt wrong. Even when I saw Amaya walking down the aisle, it felt wrong. And I realized halfway through the ceremony that it would have felt wrong even if you were there, because it wasn’t just that. It felt wrong because the wrong person was walking down the aisle towards me.”

Adam can’t breathe and it’s a good thing that Justin isn’t done, because he’s pretty sure he’s not capable of forming words. “I stopped my wedding. In the middle of the ceremony, when the priest asked me to say my vows, I stopped it. And I told Amaya I was sorry and I left. I tried to call you but your phone was off, so I got in my car and drove here.” He stops pacing and turns to look at Adam, something raw and vulnerable in his expression. “Why didn’t you come to my wedding, Adam?”

Adam takes a deep breath, lowering his feet back down to the ground. “Because I couldn’t see you marry her.” He says, after a few seconds of silence. Once the words start, he can’t make them stop. “Because I had to see you date her, I had to see you fall in love with her, and I knew I’d have to watch you stay that way for the rest of your life. And I was willing to do that, but I couldn’t watch you get married. I knew I wasn’t strong enough to handle it. Because I’m in love with you.” 

The words hang in the air for a moment, a weight leaving Adam after saying them out loud for the first time, and then Ransom is on him. Hands slide up his chest into his hair as Ransom straddles him, leaning closer and closer until their lips press together. It’s messy and desperate after so many years of waiting, so many missed chances, the feeling that they nearly lost this entirely hanging over the two of them. Adam never wants it to end. When they finally do break apart, Ransom doesn’t go far. He presses his forehead to Adam’s and Adam runs his hands over Ransom’s sides. 

Their second kiss is softer and sweeter, though it turns heated after a few moments. The two of them make their way to the bedroom, their clothes leaving a trail from the couch all the way down the hall and to the bed. 

It’s after, when Adam’s recovered enough to think straight, that he finally whispers to Ransom that he loves him. The way Ransom says it back makes Adam want to cry and kiss Ransom again, so he does. He pulls Ransom in and kisses him with everything he has, trying to communicate all the feelings he’s been hiding away for so long with one touch. 

Six months later, Adam doesn’t plan Ransom’s bachelor party. But he does stand next to him on his wedding day, only this time it’s outside a tiny wooden chapel near Niagara Falls and he’s not standing as Ransom’s best man but as his groom. When the ceremony ends and their best friends shower them with flower petals, Adam thinks he must be dreaming. But then Ransom’s hand slips into his and Ransom gives him a smile so dazzling that Adam knows it has to be real. So he doesn’t say anything, just squeezes Ransom’s hand and follows his husband back down the aisle. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it! Kudos/comments always appreciated. Follow me on Tumblr @shitttyknights to hear me scream about Holsom.


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